Mental health patients on Teesside wait nearly twice as long for treatment as the rest of the country - more than 30 days on average.

The shock figures come just days after Theresa May pledged an overhaul of services to help companies and schools deal with the “hidden injustice” of mental illness.

The Prime Minister is offering extra training for teachers, more online self-checking and a review of help available for children and teenagers.

But experts have warned more funding is needed to make a significant difference - and the latest figures show Teesside has one of the biggest backlogs in the country.

There were 760 people waiting for treatment in the South Tees clinical commissioning group (CCG) area in September, according to data from NHS Digital - with patients waiting 32 days on average.

The average wait across the whole of England, by comparison, is just 18.8 days,

Some 45 of the 760 patients in the CCG had already waited more than 90 days at the time the data - the latest available - was compiled.

Dr Angel Carrasco, clinical lead for mental health at South Tees CCG, said: “We want to improve access and waiting times and have been working closely with our providers to do this.

“Recently, a team from NHS England visited one of the therapy services we commission to help them develop an action plan to improve waiting times for our patients. We are also working to improve communication between GPs and mental health services.”

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Dr Carrasco said there had been improvement in the service over the last year.

He added: “Our Children and Young People’s mental health services have an average waiting time to treatment of around two weeks.

“Adult therapy services have seen average waiting times fall by 11 days compared to the same month in 2015. Around three quarters of people are now seen within six weeks of referral.”

Hartlepool and Stockton CCG fared only slightly better, with an average wait for treatment of 30.9 days and 30 people waiting for more than 90 days at the time the data was compiled.

By contrast, the shortest average wait in England is in Stoke-on-Trent, at just three days on average.

Dr Saleem Hassan, of NHS Hartlepool and Stockton on Tees CCG, said: “We are committed to valuing mental health equally with physical health and last year launched www.wecantalk.org with NHS South Tees CCG.

“This online resource allows you to see the latest information on providers waiting times and contact them for an appointment directly without the need to see a GP.

“We work closely with providers to keep these waiting times to a minimum and regularly review their performance.”